1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a retention system for retaining an electronic cartridge.
2. Backgroung Information
Integrated circuits are typically assembled to packages that are mounted to a printed circuit board. The printed circuit board may have a plurality of conductive pads which plug into a mating connector. The mating connector may be mounted to a motherboard of a computer system. The conductive pads must be aligned with corresponding contacts of the connector to properly connect the printed circuit board with the motherboard. Plugging the circuit board into the motherboard connector is typically a manual process which requires a certain level of skill to align the pads and contacts of the connector.
Some computer systems contain mechanical guide rails which receive the edges of the printed circuit board and align the pads with the contacts when the board is being plugged into the connector. The circuit board must be plugged into the connector in the correct orientation to properly operate within a computer system. It is therefore desirable to provide a keying feature which will insure that the circuit board is always plugged into the motherboard connector in the proper orientation.
Computer systems are sometimes exposed to shock and vibration loads. The shock and vibration loads create stresses in the printed circuit board and the motherboard connector. The guide rails are typically mounted to a metal frame of a computer which provides structural support for the circuit board and the connector. It is not always feasible to mount the guide rails to a frame of a computer. It would be desirable to provide a guide rail system that is not attached to a frame and which still provides structural support for a printed circuit board assembly plugged into a motherboard connector. It would also be desirable to provide alignment features to insure that the guide rails are properly assembled relative to the motherboard connector so that the circuit board assembly is always plugged into the connector in a proper orientation.